Calis Beach and Fethiye Turkey Discussion Forum
Calis Beach Forum => Expat & Property Owners Q and A Forum => Topic started by: Gus and Fiona on August 11, 2013, 10:10:20 AM
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Hi all,
I would like a bit of advice if possible, we are in the process of buying a house through European Estates from a British couple. The process seams quite straight forward however, is there any need to employ a lawyer to oversee this ?
Any advice would be gratefully received.
Thanks
Gus and Fiona
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Definitely use a lawyer ! You wouldn't do it in the UK without one !
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I think I'm right in saying you don't have to, but as KKOB says you should definitely use the services of a lawyer. Good Luck
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Be Very careful which lawyer you use - if you use one..... Depends how well you know the system & what you need to have checked.
Turkish Lawyers do not have the same powers as UK Solicitors eg: Contracts compiled & signed by a UK Solicitor are Binding & enforceable in Law - Not so in Turkey - it's just another piece of paper.............
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Agree that it would be wise to employ a solicitor when buying a house. However we bought one via European Estates without using one and can state without hesitation that this is one estate agent you do not need to have one for. We bought through them 7 years ago and found them to be very thorough, honest, trustworthy and are very glad we chose to use them. There are so many horror stories around re house buying in Turkey, this company is a wise choice. We still use them as our experts in every field, eg home improvements, paying bills etc. Enjoy your move to Turkey
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Agree with some of what Rosy says - the point is, choosing the right agent is as important or more important than using a solicitor (in my opinion). If you want 'belt and braces' go for both! There are good and bad (and useless) solicitors and also solicitors who represent the people you are buying from. Not anything shady, they can chase your paperwork and check for debts but when a push comes to a shove, you pay them for one transaction and the builder provides them dozens.
As a separate point, I lost count of the number of people I lost into the night who thought themselves very smart to cut me out to save an agency fee, and deal direct with a developer. All clever folks, you'll see some of them on this very website - discussing what they are going to do or how much it is going to cost to get their living permission (that the developer promised and didn't bother getting) or whether they will ever get their title deed (tapu) at all, what with it sounding like the builder is going to the wall.
I'm biased of course as I was an agent, and a fine one too ;) but when spending say £40,000 on a property in another country, their £1200 is money well spent. Good agents can't stop a developer going bust, or going back on promises to give the legally required habitation certificate, but they'll know a lot more about their current financial situation than you do. And certainly more than the builder is going to tell you!!
Good luck with your search - if you need to know anything just shout, that's what we are here for.
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One point, after hearing of horror stories on here one in particular, if using a lawyer ensure that it is your own personal lawyer and not the same as the developer/vendor, they must be impartial and have your and only your interest.
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We have been in exactly the same position as you both. We took a lot of advice off people on this forum including which estate agent to use. We followed their advice and didn't use a lawyer as the agent did all the legal work for us. Thankfully all went through very smoothly and we received the tapu with living permission in 10 weeks. We also bought our apartment form a British lady, who was also very helpful and made things a lot easier. We can say we are definitely two very happy owners,and so glad we did what we were told so to speak. Good luck to you both,I am sure you won't regret buying.
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we also bought our villa without a solicitor,but we had a good agent,got the tapu and L/P
good luck in whatever ou decide
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What would in most developed country's, be an illegal 'Conflict of Interest' & thus prevent a Lawyer/Solicitor from 'representing' both the interested parties, obviously doesn't exist in Turkey!
It may not be 'illegal' not informing a potential client about their 'other' interests which naturally create a conflict of interest but- it's damned underhand imo, a dishonest & immoral practice!
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European estates have been in business for over 20 years.. I have known at least 5 friends who have bought from with no problems whatsoever.. All re sales... Don't know if this is less problematical? I personally would trust them... The agent we bought off years ago told me that the lawyers in |Fethiye are more corrupt than most of the agents... lol
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I would like a bit of advice if possible, we are in the process of buying a house through European Estates from a British couple. The process seams quite straight forward however, is there any need to employ a lawyer to oversee this ?
With a decent agent there is no need to employ a solicitor, you'd effectively be paying two people to do the same job. A good agent will do all the required checks and searches, at the end of the day he wants a smooth transaction for both buyer and seller. European Estates have been around for years and any time I've had dealings with them found them to be very professional.
Definitely use a lawyer ! You wouldn't do it in the UK without one !
They're not buying in the U.K., they're buying in Turkey. Different process and generally speaking, Turkish lawyers take nothing to do with conveyancing - they don't even learn about it during their training!
Using a solicitor is no guarantee that everything will go smoothly - its not the U.K. and solicitors in Turkey very often have different perceptions as to what "acting in the clients best interest" actually means. Go read the Manzara Construction thread as this illustrates the mindset of a local solicitor who is often recommended on here (used Ozlen myself in the past without an issue).
the point is, choosing the right agent is as important or more important than using a solicitor (in my opinion).
Totally agree.
JF
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We also used European Estates when we bought in 2004,absolutely first class service and have had no problems when recommending them.
Regular contact from them during the purchase to tell us what was happening and the Tapu delivered within their time scale.
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We also used European Estates when we bought in 2004,absolutely first class service and have had no problems when recommending them.
Regular contact from them during the purchase to tell us what was happening and the Tapu delivered within their time scale.
Totally agree, first class service.
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Thank you all for your replies, they have been very useful. I think we have had the full spectrum of views so it has given us plenty to think about.
Once again thank you all for your help in this.
Gus and Fiona